


Mugged

by chlolou1208



Category: Emmerdale, vanity - Fandom
Genre: F/F, Family, Mentions of Johnny, Mentions of Moses, Noah and Vanessa bonding, chemo mentions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 21:40:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24223687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chlolou1208/pseuds/chlolou1208
Summary: Noah is mugged and Vanessa takes him to the hospital, she has a run in with the staff and Noah defends his mum.
Relationships: Charity Dingle/Vanessa Woodfield
Comments: 7
Kudos: 93





	Mugged

There’s a trickle of blood coming from just above his eyebrow, his hand covers it to stop it from running into his eye while his other hand clutches his jacket that had managed to come off of his shoulders in the scuffle. As he nears the house, he removes his hand to check if his wound had stopped bleeding, it hadn’t, he winced and placed his palm back above his eyebrow, pressing slightly. 

He see’s her watching television in her sky blue and white dressing gown, it’s wrapped tightly around her shoulders reflecting the cold wind that blows fiercely outside. 

Before he can speak she turns round to see who’s just walked through the revolving door that is their home, Tracy and Rhona often bursting through the door unannounced, Rhona does knock first though he’s noticed unlike whirlwind Tracy. She gasps, jumping up quickly and gripping the sofa when her eyes become foggy in order to steady herself. 

“Noah what on earths happened?” He braces himself for her fluttering, gentle hands that take his jacket from him first and then hold his shoulders, her eyes frowning as they scan his body for further injuries. 

He takes a breath before replying, wiping his bloodied hand on his black school trousers. “Some idiots” he shrugs, “took me bag an phone” He says, cursing himself silently for the tears that bulge their way to the forefront of his eyes. 

They’re wide from shock, and his hands are a little shaky. His face is pale, except the bruise now appearing beneath his left eye and the vibrant red dripping from his cut. Vanessa unwraps the dressing gown quickly, muttering reassuring words to him (even though she appears a lot more worried than he does) as she scrambles around for her car keys. 

“Come on we need to get you to the hospital” Vanessa says, pushing him lightly towards the door. 

“Ness I really don’t-“

“That needs stitches Noah, come on it’ll be fine” Vanessa grabs her green coat from the shelf and passes his other, warmer jacket. He slips it on quickly and heads to Vanessa’s car. 

******

“No! I’m not having it, we’ve been sat here for ages now, my son has been _mugged_ I’ll have you know-“

Vanessa’s angry voice echoes through the corridors of the hospital, it’s emptier than it usually is which is why she’s blowing her lid. They’d checked in when they’d arrived, she’d explained his injuries and they’d handed him an ice pack and a paper towel to rest on his head while they waited for the doctor to check his wound and put him stitches in. That was around around an hour ago, and patients had walked in and out right in front of the pair while they’d sat patiently waiting. Noah had been tapping his foot frustratedly for the last 15 minutes, also tired of waiting, and that’s when Vanessa had had enough. She’d marched up to the front desk, or as best as she could a few days after a chemo session, and demanded that her son be seen. They’d told her that it wasn’t on a first come first served basis, and they’d try to get to Noah within the next hour. 

“Vanessa chill you’ll end up getting arrested again” Noah says. He‘d got up quickly when he’d heard her shouting and arguing with the receptionist, his face colouring from embarrassment. 

“Noah you could be _concussed_ and they’re just-“

Noah pulls her away from the receptionist, he glares at her sour face as he tugs Vanessa’s elbow over to some seats in the corner. 

Vanessa huffs and he laughs at her moody face. 

“Careful, if wind changes you’ll look like that forever” He jokes. 

Vanessa shrugs pouting still, “Like Charity does”. That makes him laugh, and they sit in a comfortable silence until a nurse finally fetches them 20 minutes later. 

********

He squints and presses his fingers to his eyes, a doctor has just checked his pupils with probably the brightest bloody torch light he’s ever seen. Thankfully he wasn’t concussed and the doctor assured that he’d have stitches and be able to go home in no time. He and Vanessa wait for a few minutes for a nurse to come and stitch up his cut, he feels butterflies in his stomach as he anticipates, watching her take out scissors and tweezers but smiles as Vanessa reaches for his hand and squeezes it in hers. They’re cold so he flinched at first and his warm ones end up heating up hers by the time the stitches are done. Vanessa swears to not tell anyone about how tightly he was gripping her fingers. They thank the nurse and Vanessa makes an appointment for him to get the stitches taken back out in just under two weeks time while he grabs some Quavers from the vending machine. 

********  
  
He glances at her sideways when she doesn’t start the car immediately after coming out of he hospital. He munches on his crisps and frowns when she doesn’t even make an effort to start the car while he’s suited and booted with his seatbelt already strapped in.

“What’s up? Do you feel sick or summat?” He asks worriedly. He knows it can come on quickly, the dizzy spells, the tiredness and the nausea. 

She shakes her head though, a small smile reassuring him. “No love, I’m fine. I just wanted to ask what happened, we didn’t really talk about it before we left for the hospital” 

He sighs. “Oh.” He eats the last crisp from the packet and crunches the wrapper in his hands. 

“Some guys, they had their hoods up and masks on, couldn’t see them properly. Anyways I was walking home because I missed the bus after playing footy after school…”

Vanessa tuts, he walks home a lot of the time but she isn’t fond of the idea, she prefers her or Charity to pick him up, or for him to get a lift with a mate or something. Especially if he walks on his own. 

“I was listening to music on my phone and then this guy yanked my earphones out while two others grabbed my bag so I couldn’t move my arms”. A quick glance at Vanessa, she’s frowning and her cheeks are burning, he reminds her of a cartoon character that Moses and Johnny watch. 

“I tried to get my phone back but one of them punched me didn’t they, straight in face and then I fell backwards, they ran off then, I tried chasing after ‘em but there was no point, they were long gone” He says. 

Vanessa reaches forward and places a hand on his knee comfortingly. “God Noah I’m so sorry this has happened…” 

He shrugs. “Nowt anyone could have done so…”

Vanessa starts the engine then, adjusting her mirror a little bit before putting her seatbelt on. He turns the radio on but turns it down incase she wants to talk to him again. 

“Where’s Moses and Johnny anyways, I thought they had day off on Fridays” He asks as they pull out of the car park. He didn’t even consider that Vanessa had been on her own when he’d got back, his mum isn’t working until later on so he assumed they’d be spending the day together. He knows Sarah’s on her way to Debbie’s for a visit with Zak and Belle. 

“Charity’s taken them to that new play area, I was asleep still when they all left so not sure when they’ll be back” 

“Sorry for making you drive all way here then, I know you’ve just had chemo and that” 

Vanessa shakes her head and pats his knee as it’s safe to do so while they’re at a red light. 

“You didn’t _make_ me do anything, actually if I remember correctly it was me that practically dragged you here, and with good reason” 

Noah nods. “Oh yeah” he laughs. 

He reclines his seat a bit further back and crises his feet at his ankles. He notices how muddy his shoes are, he hadn’t changed out of his football trainers yet and he’s surprised Vanessa hasn’t said anything, knowing her car is always spotless. 

He rests his head against the window and closes his eyes, the radio lulling in the background. 

**********  
  
He feels the car pull up onto a curb and come to a stop, assuming they’re home he takes his seatbelt off and climbs out of the car. Vanessa does the same and locks her doors. 

“What we doing here?” He frowns seeing they’re at the police station and not outside Jacobs Fold. 

“Reporting those thugs who mugged ya, come on” Vanessa says and begins walking towards the door, she goes dizzy a little and her feet manage to trip over one another so Noah rushes to her side in an instant, holding her up with his arm around her waist. 

She takes a breath, “thanks” and when her dizzy spell has passed she carries on walking, Noah doesn’t let her go though until they’re inside. 

Vanessa heads over to the front desk to speak to the policeman minding the area. She explains what’s happened and he tells her to take a seat and someone will be with her. They take a seat and an officer comes out shortly to take a statement from Noah, Vanessa accompanies him while he’s being interviewed. They inform them that without Noah’s description of the boys’ faces, it’s be hard to catch who did it, though they assure them they’ll check any CCTV around where it happened and try to track his phone down.   
When they’re on the way out, Vanessa catches the eye of a woman in place of the police officer that had been behind the front desk earlier. She scoffs as the woman gives her a dirty look. 

“You again, what’ve you done this time? Assaulted another nurse?” She says, the latter part under her breath but Noah and Vanessa both hear it. 

Vanessa storms on over to her, Noah walking quickly behind her. 

“Why do you think your so high and mighty just cos you’re a police officer ey? You lot are useless anyway, you’d rather arrest me for raising my voice a little bit at a nurse but when a young lad gets mugged it’s all ‘ _oh we’ll try but don’t hold out hope for the culprits to be arrested’_ ” Vanessa scoffs, muttering under her breath while Noah widens his eyes at her, no wonder she’s saved in his mums phone as ‘tiny blonde rocket woman’. He would burst out laughing and watch it all play out but he remembers how his mum has reacted when Vanessa had gotten all het up and thrown a drink at a student, _‘you should be resting you’ll make yourself even more ill_ ’ she’d shouted at her before storming out. 

He’s about to pull Vanessa away, again, from causing another argument when the large beefy woman behind the desk slams her hands down on it in front of Vanessa, who jumps a little at the sound. 

“Listen lady I don’t have time to be talking to crazy women like you so do us a favour and leave before I put you back in the same cell as before” 

Noah steps in front of the woman, not liking her talking down (literally and metaphorically) to the one person he believes is completely wholesome. 

“Oi don’t speak to her like that”

The woman rolls her eyes and looks Noah up and down, “what’s it to you?” 

“She’s me mum and she’s actually proper ill so I’d be careful what you say or she might puke on you” he frowns at her and before anyone can respond he pulls Vanessa by her wrist to the automatic door. He doesn’t let go until they get to a car, and doesn’t notice that Vanessa is beaming like a Cheshire Cat, teeth bright and shining through her smile. 

*******  
  
They were silent in the car, Noah scoffing a laugh and shaking his head fondly when Vanessa starts singing to all the latest pop songs on the radio, he needs to stop Sarah from teaching her anymore Tiktok dances. When they pull up at the house Charity’s car is there already so Noah prepares himself for a stampede of Moses and Johnny. 

Vanessa and him get out of the car and head towards the door. Vanessa turns round, “no screaming kids, looks like Charity can control the two little terrors” she comments, making Noah laugh and then pushing open the door. Charity must be upstairs since there’s no sign of life in the living room or kitchen. Noah dumps his shoes and kicks them into a sort of tidy order, and hangs up his coat. Vanessa heads into the kitchen and prepares him a glass of water. 

“Here take these” She hands him two painkillers. “They’ll hopefully help with the pain” She said, Noah thanks her and gulps them down. 

He puts a pillow behind his head and leans back against the sofa, turning the tv on before Vanessa sits down next to him. She spies a blanket folded in the other chair, she’d been wrapped up in it earlier because the house felt as if it was in the middle of a snow storm not a house with heating on full wack. Reaching over to grab it, she grunts a little as she sits back down in the sofa, feeling as if she’d ran five marathons not drove to the hospital and back. She wraps the blanket over herself and places the other ends over Noah’s knees. He sighs contently and ends up putting a gogglebox episode on, even though it’s probably a repeat. 

  
They hear Charity come downstairs about ten minutes into the episode. 

“Hiya” Vanessa says softly. “We’ve had a bit of an incident” 

Charity frowns, she’s got her hair in a short bun on the top of her head, it’s wet so they assume she’s just been in the shower. 

“Hey, where were ya? I’ve been ringing ya-“

Vanessa sighs guiltily. “Sorry I must’ve left my phone here, was in a bit of a rush” 

“Rush?” Charity comes round the sofa now and perches on the arm of the chair. 

Her eyes widen and her jaw drops when she sees Noah with stitches across his forehead. “Babe? What the hells happened?” 

“Got jumped didn’t I, Ness took care of it” He says, as if it’s nothing. 

Charity’s heart pounds in worry and anger, her son was mugged. 

“Oh my god, who did it? I’ll kill ‘em” 

Noah rolls his eyes, “I dunno mum, we went to the police station to report it but I didn’t see there faces so basically no chance of catching them” 

Charity stands and shakes her head, “Well that ain’t good enough is it”. She goes to sit on the other side of Noah, and carefully strokes over his stitches, she’s gentle enough and he doesn’t flinch. 

“That’s what Vanessa said, nearly got herself arrested, twice actually…” he says, Charity noticing the knowing look between the two of them, they’re grinning suspiciously. 

“Ey?”

“I had a go at the receptionist in the hospital and then saw that woman again in the police station who banged me up for absolutely no reason” she huffs and crosses her arms, reminded of her sour face again. 

“It was well embarrassing” 

Charity notices the banter between the two, with anyone else she might feel left out, as though yet again her kid has chosen someone else to laugh with, to like over herself. Right now though she just feels warm, her heart flutters as she watches them laughing with each other.   
  
“So you’re alright then yeah? Not in pain or anything?” Charity asks.

Noah shakes his head, “I’ve just taken some painkillers anyways” he stretches his arms above his head and then stands. 

“I’m gonna go shower, call me when teas ready” he makes his way upstairs, halfway Vanessa shouts and asks if he wants pizza and he yells back that he wants the pepperoni one not the bbq chicken. 

Charity shuffles over into his warm space and cuddles up against her fiancé. 

“Charity” 

“What babe” 

Vanessa’s smiling and she leans forward to bump her shoulder with Charity’s. 

“He called me his mum” 

Vanessa smiles as if she’s won the lottery three times over. Charity’s grin almost matches hers. 

“Did he?” 

“Yep, defending me an everything to that mardy old bag in the station”

Charity laughed. She leans forward and kisses Vanessa. 

Everything seems so right, so lovely between them recently. They’re on the same page, finally, and Charity hopes they’re never off with each other ever again. Their family unit is stronger than ever, especially since Charity had agreed to officially adopt Johnny as her own, although everyone knows he was her boy way before and will always be, no matter if there’s a signature on a paper or not. Vanessa’s never been more grateful for her family, keeping her spirits up, even if at some times it’s a bit full on. Sarah distracts her by showing her videos, forcing her to sit still while she practices a winged eyeliner on her. Noah is the complete opposite of his mum when it comes to distracting her, supporting her through chemo. He goes about it subtly. He sits with her at night instead of playing on his x-box, he makes her cuppa teas and brings them to her room sometimes if his mum is working and she’s by herself. He even surprised her the other day by asking her to play a game on the wii, Charity had gotten it out for Moses and Johnny to play on but the boys had gotten bored of it eventually and wanted to go to the park, Sarah had taken them while Charity was working. They’d played for hours on Mario kart, he laughed at her dramatic arm movements when driving while she boasted about winning him on some games. 

“So he should, cos you are his mum aren’t ya…” Charity smiles. 

“Yeah, yeah I am” Vanessa smiles into an overdue kiss. 


End file.
